Jack, yes you can knock it down with a file. I take it you are refering to the fact that the washers are round and stick out past the flats on the barrel and prevent the handguard retaining ring from seating properly? If that is what you are talking about then yes you can take a file and knock 'em down. You then have you option of refinishing it in that spot whether it be a little cold blue or a complete refinish when you get the gun completely assembled, test fired, and bugs worked out. I never did get around to finishing my inch kit, I got it why back when and the black enamel finish was so nice I forewent refinishing it. It looks a little funky on a pristine parkerized Imbel type 3 but what the heck it is just a kit gun when it comes down to it. I like the inch controls better than the metrics and the L1 version seems to be a bit lighter than it's metric counterparts that I own. I bet it'd be really light with the correct type I receiver.

Century sent out an email a few days back that had a list of guns for sale. On the list they had 50 kits for like $129.99. Of course I saw the email the next day. There was a follow up email in less than one hour which said the fal kits had all sold out.

Did those darn Century kits go like hot cakes or what? I did not get to my e-mails at work until noon or so and those kits were so far gone it was not even funny. The last thing I need is yet another FAL kit, but darn it I probably would've jumped on it. Did some one say the Fal bug is bad?